Large areas of the coastline covered by the advisory are still recovering from the 2011 quake and tsunami disaster that killed more than 18,000 people and triggered a meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Plant operators Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) said there were no immediate reports of abnormality after the quake.

"We have not seen any damage or any change in radiation gauges after the quake," said TEPCO spokesman Masahiro Asaoka.

"Today's operation has yet to start but we ordered workers to evacuate to high places."

The United States Geological Survey said the quake struck around 129 kilometres east south-east of the town of Namie, and an estimated 284 kilometres east-north-east of the capital Tokyo, at 4:22 am (local time).

The Fukushima plant's cooling systems were swamped by the 2011 tsunami, sparking reactor meltdowns and radiation leaks in the worst atomic crisis in a generation.

Tens of thousands of people were evacuated from around the plant, with decommissioning of the site expected to take decades.

The quake registered a moderate 4 on the Japanese seismic scale of 1-7, meaning that major damage was unlikely.

Japan is situated at the conjuncture of several tectonic plates and experiences a number of relatively violent quakes every year.